Tina Malone particulars the second she begged her IVF physician on her fiftieth birthday to ‘make her pregnant’ after turning her life round and dropping 12 stone following her earlier rejection

Tina Malone has recalled the incredible moment she walked into her IVF doctor’s office on her 50th birthday and begged him to ‘make me pregnant’.

The former Shameless star, 62, welcomed her second child Flame, 11, at age 50 in 2013 after undergoing IVF using donor eggs.

In an candid interview on The Lewis Nicholls Show on Thursday, Tina looked back on her journey to becoming a mother again, following her desire to welcome a child with her late husband Paul Chase, who was 19 years her junior. 

During the interview, Tina spoke about how she applied the resilience that she had during her acting career to her personal life and strived to welcome another baby despite being patronised by others who would say ‘bless her’. 

She then went on to reveal that her Cypriot Consultant Gynaecologist Dr. R. Gazvania initially rejected her for IVF treatment due to her weight and other factors, before she later returned 12 stone lighter urging him to treat her. 

She told host Lewis: ‘I said I’d have a baby at 50 and people would be even more “bless her!” but I gave birth and four weeks later I turned 51. And I breastfed and I’ve got a beautiful 11-year-old daughter and a 43-year-old daughter. Because I believe if you want it badly enough and if you work at it…

‘When I met my surgeon and he went “you’re grossly overweight, you’re 20 years older than your husband, you’ve got a daughter who’s grown up and married, you work 80 hours a week on Shameless, you smoke, you’ve had drugs and drink in your past… I don’t think you’re the right criteria that fits us to go to Cyprus or Spain to get pregnant, to have fertility treatment”. I went “Oh, Ok”.’

Tina then revealed how she then completely turned her life around and walked back into his office with ‘an envelope of cash’ and a newfound confidence before encouraging him to ‘make me pregnant’. 

She continued: ‘I went back, because I’m a little bit OCD, on the day of my 50th birthday, the day of my 50th birthday, with an envelope with money in and I went to him “there you go! Test my hair for nicotine, drugs, alcohol… anything you want!

‘I’ve lost 12 stone four pounds in a year. Here’s my husband. I’ve just handed my notice in to a show that is probably the best show on TV, Channel 4’s Shameless”. I was kinda feeling a little bit like top dog. “I’ve just given them six weeks notice. Now will you do me?”‘

‘And Gazvania went “you’re 50 today?” And I went “Today. I’m leaving here in a minute Mr Gazvania and going to my 50th birthday party. I’ve got hair and make-up booked at 7, it’s in the Carriage Works in Liverpool, hundreds of people coming and I want you to make me pregnant!” 

‘And by April, I was pregnant.’

She added: ‘And that’s the truth. There’s no embellishment there, I’m not gilding the lily that’s facts!’

Back in 2016, Tina defended her decision to have a baby later in life during an appearance on This Morning, saying: ‘I have no regrets. I gave up smoking, lost 11.5 stone to have IVF.

‘My blood pressure and cholesterol are better than ever. I used to be drinking and doing drugs. It’s about being healthy.’

‘When Mick Jagger, Simon Cowell and Peter Stringfellow became dads later in life, they got a pat on the back. You look at Ronnie Wood. He’s rock and roll. He’s still young at heart.’

She added: ‘I am more confident and well travelled now I’m older. I could drop dead tomorrow. But you could be 20 and go under a bus.

‘You do the best you can. Is it better to have two bad parents or one good one? My gran lived to 102 and my mother is 76 and as fit as a fiddle.

‘Twenty-year-olds, come to a nightclub with me and see who can dance the longest.’

As well as Flame, Tina also has a grown-up daughter Danielle from a previous relationship, having fallen pregnant when she was 17. 

Meanwhile, Tina broke down in tears as she reflected on her husband Paul Chase’s tragic suicide, a year after his death.

The former Celebrity Big Brother star previously shared that her husband, a war veteran, was driven to suicide after struggling with PTSD following his time in the armed forces.

In a preview clip for her interview on The Lewis Nicholls Show, Tina said that the treatment of war veterans ‘needs to change,’ after previously sharing that Paul, 42, turned to drink and drugs in an attempt to cope with his time serving in the army.

Breaking down in tears, she said: ‘My husband fought in Iraq, Afghanistan, Northern Ireland.

‘He went from Belize to Cyprus, and he had a wonderful life in the army. But 4.8 veterans take their own lives in the UK every week.

‘You never hear about it and it needs to change now.’

 ‘Saw a picture of who is in witness protection for the last 30 years, and I just shared it, along with two million other people, [I] didn’t comment.

‘But yeah, I ended up that High Court with an eight month suspended prison sentence for two years and a large, large fine and costs. [I regret it] absolutely, totally and utterly.’

Tina tied the knot with Paul, who is 19 years her junior, in 2010 and they were married for nine years, before briefly separating in 2019 – getting back together just months later in February 2020.